Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Dangerous Signal Fire

A lost hiker in Australia accidentally sparked a wildfire while trying to use a signal fire to alert authorities to his predicament. When the rescue helicopter arrived over his position, the downdraft from the rotors caused the fire to flare up and spread into surrounding brush. The incident could have become tragic, but was fortunately brought under control quickly by a small team of fire fighters.

Two types of lessons can be learned from this incident — what the hiker did right, and what he did wrong.

What he did right:

He climbed to a high point where he could be seen from a distance by rescuers.

He decided to aid the rescuers by using a visible signal.

What he did wrong:

He chose fire as his visible signal device. A mirror would have been much more effective and less hazardous. A PLB would be the very best choice, because it transmits the distress signal along with exact GPS coordinates so the rescue team doesn't have to waste time searching empty ground.

Evidently, he didn't clear the area sufficiently to prevent his signal fire embers from straying into dry fuel.

When the helicopter arrived and the hiker could see that the crew had spotted him, he failed to bury the fire with dirt to prevent the rotor downdraft from spreading embers into the brush.

Wildfire is exceptionally dangerous and destructive. Even if you're in a dire survival situation and your life is at risk, don't light the world on fire just to call attention to yourself. It's your responsibility to not only save yourself, but protect everything else around you.

If you decide to use a signal fire (or a fire for any reason):

Build it on mineral soil so underground organic material doesn't start to burn and spread the fire underground.

Clear the area both around the fire and overhead, so there is no possibility that embers can ignite dry material.

Keep the fire small so it's easy to control.

Have loose dirt or water nearby to extinguish the fire.

As you feed wood into the fire, do it gently so as not to send a bunch of sparks into the air.

Your actions while trying to save yourself can end up putting the lives of others at risk. The very act of calling for rescue puts the lives of the SAR team at risk, so don't add to it by creating a more dangerous situation. Before you use your matches, use your brains.

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My career has focused on wilderness survival, urban survival, and surviving catastrophic disasters.
After serving in Special Forces, I took our family to live in a cave in the wilds of southern Utah, while I prepared to become a survival instructor. We spent a year in the wilderness, experiencing all sorts of shelters, and making full use of the natural resources.
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